It's a peek at a new mitten......and it's the first of three (possibly four) new mitten patterns that will be coming your way this November. This one's called Zarzuela (which I think would be a marvellous name for a cat,) and she's been Ravelled right over here. It really never ends (and who would want it to, anyway?)

A couple of weeks ago I announced that I had finished knitting the Clerkenwell socks. Allow me to elaborate on that announcement with the happy news that the pattern is now available.

To get your own copy you can click that wee button up there, find it here on Ravelry, or watch for it to appear very soon in my Etsy shop.

If you're looking for something a little more instant-gratification, I am pleased to announce that a limited number of pairs of Clerkenwell socks (in men's sizes, handknit by me, of course,) will be turning up in the Antique Beat Boutique relatively soon.

I'm really enjoying all this making...I had forgotten how satisfying it can be.This is the leaf fob from my Magic Treetop Bag (another fab-tastic tinyowlknitspattern,) which is part of my Queen of The Wild Things costume. I love it to teeny tiny pieces. This totally handmade, crazily-detailed costume is really starting to come together.

The best part? All the yarns and bits and bobs that I've used have all come from my ample bead/bell/fabric/ribbon/yarn stashes, respectively. This makes me feel really good -- that I have such useful and attractive stashes; that I'm able to take a bite out of them to a productive end; that I haven't lost my touch.

Of course, then I start getting concerned -- wondering, idly, just how much stuff I've picked up these past five years in order to be able to put an entirely handmade, crazily-detailed costume just from things around the house. Perhaps it's best not to pursue that thought too much. The important part is that disparate things are coming together and being turned into beautiful and useful things (thank you, Mr. Morris,) and that makes me happy.

Whatever the reason, I got my hands on the pattern as soon as it was released and within a day I had produced no less than four of the little guys:They're only lacking their little gnome-eyes. This morning I went in search of my felting needles to rectify this problem...

...and came up short. My felting needles are nowhere to be found. I suspect that the gnomes caught wind of this whole "stab their eyes into place" business and hid them on me.

This theory gains strength as it was today (while puttering around in the Bowels of the Basement in search of the non-existent needles) that I happened upon a world of Lost Treasures: the detritus of my Crafty Exploits of times past. Suddenly I was surrounded by pearls and gems and trinkets; twine and moss; fabric and feathers and beads and bells......before I knew it, I was knee-deep into making jewels for my Queen of The Wild Things costume (which, incidentally, is based around tinyowlknits' Where The Wild Things Are jumper.)I do love pheasant feathers!

A while back The Clerkenwell Kid (aka Stephen Coates) asked me to let him know when I would knit Clerkenwell. As you can see, that day has arrived.This is Clerkenwell in sock form (and it's been Ravelled.) The colourwork cuff boasts patterning reminiscent of clocks and crosses (the area has particular associations with both) and the serpentine cabling depicts the lost River Fleet -- diverted and hidden but still flowing underground.

Mr. Coates has a certain affinity with Clerkenwell that is infectious to say the least. Since I've gotten myself caught up in the mystery and mythology that he's created it's only fitting that I commemorate the entire affair in silk and wool. I can only hope that I've done it justice.Be that as it may, you can be sure that I will be sporting a pair when I visit Clerkenwell this spring to follow the River Fleet myself. For those of you who would like to do the same (or would just like to knit yourself or someone you love a pair of elegant socks,) the pattern will be available very, very soon.

I just received three skeins of Brooklyn Tweed's Shelter in the mail. I've never wanted to marry yarn before, but this...this...It's a good thing that yarn can't propose because I'd be hard-pressed not to say "yes, yes, YES."

Maybe I'm a bit caught up in the romance of meeting a new handsome yarn -- regardless, Shelter is classic and perfect and delicious. The look, the feel, the smell of this yarn are showstoppers all. Can't wait to work with this stuff.

Next up are my Clerkenwell socks. As you can see, they've been travelling around in suitably fatalistic style.I took a sizable nibble out of them yesterday. Now, this may not look like much, but what you can't see is the inch-and-a-half that I had to frog due to a incorrect label in my chart. This is why I love test-knitting -- I make the mistakes so you don't have to.

I expect that these ones should be dropping off my needles shortly, which means another pattern will soon be headed your way. Look out.